Unicorn Clan
From L5r: Legend of the Five Rings
Once known as the Ki-Rin Clan, the Unicorn Clan departed Rokugan shortly after the Day of Thunder. The Kami Shinjo, founder of the clan, hoped to avert other threats to Rokugan by discovering them first. They roamed the world for eight centuries before returning to Rokugan.
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[edit] Place and Purpose
The Unicorn have the finest cavalries in all of Rokugan. They are considered barbarians by most of the other clans. They spent eight hundred years outside the empire, exploring the Burning Sands and other lands, and Rokugan's cultured society believes that in the two centuries since their return, they have not learned the ways of their motherland. The clans could not be more wrong. The Unicorn know the ways of their cousins, but choose to follow their own, influenced by gaijin cultures. Because of this, they are held in low regard by many, but feared for their military might.[1]
[edit] History
- For further information on this section, please see Timeline of the Ki-Rin's Exodus
[edit] The Ki-Rin Leave
Three years after the defeat of her brother Fu Leng in the year 42, Shinjo led her people into the Burning Sands in the year 45 to search for threats to Rokugan from beyond its borders in the year.[2]
[edit] The Return of the Ki-Rin
The Return of the Ki-Rin was the period in the years 815 - 816 when the Ki-Rin Clan returned through the Shadowlands to Rokugan. The group called themselves the Unicorn Clan and bore little resemblance to the honorable Ki-Rin that left the empire so many centuries prior.
[edit] The Lion's Corruption
In 1132, Unicorn Magistrates were tasked by Toturi I with forcing the Lion Clan to answer for their crimes commited during his absence. The Lion had been practicing maho, and even the Jade Champion Kitsu Okura had taken part in the corruption of the Lion.[3]
[edit] The Gift of the Naga
In 1135, as the Naga prepared to re-enter their sleep, they gave to the Unicorn Clan a great golden pearl. In return, the Unicorn swore to defend Shinomen Mori during the Naga's sleep. Later, the pearl 'hatched,' birthing the woman known as Akasha.[4]
[edit] Current Events
The Unicorn currently are enjoying a level of fear and respect that they have not known in their history. They have defeated the armies of the Lion Clan, an accomplishment that no one within Rokugan can remember happening using sheer military might. The Khan knows that he must sustain momentum for the Unicorn to keep this reputation. To this end, he intends to strike the Lion again while they are still reeling from their earlier loss. He has made peace with the Dragon Clan, who had put themselves in position to be mortal enemies of the Unicorn with their interference in the War of the Rich Frog. Unknown to the Dragon is that Chagatai's goal in this is to gain permission to peacefully cross the lands of the Dragon when Ikoma Otemi inevitably seeks to restore the honor of the Lion.[citation needed]
[edit] The Last Battle
The Khan planned to march to the capital, but the sudden attack of the Lion Clan obliged the Unicorn Clan to retire. It seems that the Khan's purpose was to take the throne in the Emperor's absence.
[edit] Details
[edit] Statistics
- Capital: Shiro Moto
- Population: 3,650,000 (approx)
- Military: 203,000 samurai
- Imports: Finished Goods
- Exports: Exotic Goods, Horses
[edit] Families
The following are the families of the Unicorn Clan:
[edit] Schools
The following are the schools within the Unicorn Clan:
- Horiuchi Shugenja
- Ide Duelist
- Ide Emissary
- Iuchi Shugenja
- Master Horse Archer
- Moto Bushi
- Moto Priest of Death
- Shinjo Bushi
- Shinjo Elite Guard
- Shinjo Magistrate
- Shinjo Scout
- Utaku Battle Maiden
- Utaku Infantry
[edit] Samurai
See Samurai of the Unicorn Clan for a listing of notable members of the clan, both current and historic. For the leaders of the clan, see also:
